C2D demonstrates the power of
people to connect through the Internet, particular young people, and accomplish
complex research tasks. This exercise has provided a large number of clues
towards obtaining a comprehensive view of the microbes as a whole, producing
several testable hypotheses that can now be verified in the laboratory.
Almost
at the dawn of its creation in 2008, the Open Source Drug Discovery (OSDD)
http://www.osdd.net programme, which is a CSIR-led Team India consortium with
global partnership, had identified Mycobacterium
tuberculosis (Mtb) as
its first target. The reason is not far to seek. With a history going back to
prehistoric times, TB has stalked the Earth for millennia, claiming Pharaohs of
ancient Egypt as well as Poets of contemporary times. However, despite all our
grand advances in science we have failed to wipe it off the face of the globe.
Fortuitously
for us, however, the IT-revolution in the early days of the twenty-first
century has powered Genomics research such that looking at genomes has become
easier. Rational drug discovery hinges on knowing the best target to
attack, the best pathway to exploit and to do so while wasting a minimum of
resources, including time. Knowing the genome is now the
first step to knowing how to control a pathogen.

Disclaimer: NISCAIR assumes no responsibility for the statements and opinions advanced by contributors. The editorial staff in its work of examining papers received for publication is helped, in an honorary capacity, by many distinguished engineers and scientists.